Definition

privatisation (noun) The process or act of transferring ownership, control, or management of a business, industry, or service from the government (the public sector) to private individuals or companies (the private sector).

Usage

This term is used primarily in economic and political contexts to describe a major policy shift. It often refers to the sale of state-owned assets, such as companies or utilities, to private investors. The term is spelled privatization in American English.

Examples

• The government announced the privatisation of the national railway company.
• Many economists argue that privatisation leads to greater efficiency and innovation.
• The debate over the privatisation of the healthcare system is ongoing.

Advanced Usage

• Mass privatisation: Refers to a large-scale, rapid transfer of many state assets to private hands, often associated with the economic transition in post-communist countries in the 1990s.
  • The mass privatisation programme had significant social consequences.
• To undergo privatisation: A common collocation describing the process from the perspective of the asset or service being sold.
  • The state-owned steel plant is scheduled to undergo privatisation next year.

Variants and Related Words

• Privatize (verb, also spelled ): To transfer from public to private control.
  • The government plans to privatize the postal service.
• Privatized (adjective): Describing something that has been transferred to private ownership.
  • a privatized electricity grid
• Denationalization (noun): A near-synonym, specifically meaning the transfer of a nationalized industry back to private ownership.

Synonyms

• Denationalization
• Deregulation (related but distinct; focuses on removing government rather than transferring )
• Divestiture (in a governmental context)

Antonyms

• Nationalization
• Municipalization

Noun

1. changing something from state to private ownership or control